I've been doing a lot of barefoot running on grass, and I wanted to see if it transferred to running on pavement. Today, I put on my Puma H Street shoes and headed up a mile-long road. From the outset, it didn't feel right. The good feelings from running on grass were gone - replaced by tension everywhere. I only ran a mile up and a mile back, but I was happy it was over. I couldn't feel the ground, and the run certainly triggered the stress response.
A couple hours later, I returned to the hill with my new Vibram FiveFingers. This changed everything. My stride was naturally shorter and crisper. My balance was better, and my breathing was less labored. In short, it felt similar to the barefoot running I've been doing (except I still like running on grass instead of pavement!).
Given that the Puma H Street is a thin shoe, I'm surprised at how disruptive it was to my running. All this keeps bringing me back to the same conclusion: running is supposed to be done barefoot. It's no wonder that 75% of runners are injured every year because 95% of them wear thick shoes. If you cut off your feedback from the ground via thick shoes, your body has nothing to work with in improving mechanics.
Everything felt better in the Vibrams. I could sense my bodyweight better, and I felt the need to lean more. The only thing that wasn't good was the heel part still rubs a bit. I had sports tape on my heels, but it fell off with the sweat. I'll try something else for this minor issue.
